Bowling Shoe Kit With Interchangeable Slide Pads

ABSTRACT

A bowling shoe kit is provided including a shoe upper, a shoe sole mounted to the shoe upper and having a slide area extending longitudinally from a toe end of the sole rearwardly towards an arch portion thereof, at least one slide pad having a peripheral margin substantially equal to a peripheral margin of the slide area and extending laterally substantially across an entire width of the sole, and a fastener removably securing the slide pad to the slide area. The slide pad includes a first area having a first coefficient of friction, a second area having a second coefficient of friction, and a third area having a third coefficient of friction, wherein the first coefficient of friction is different from the third coefficient of friction, and the second coefficient of friction presents a transition from the first coefficient of friction to the third coefficient of friction.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to shoes for bowling. Moreparticularly, the present invention relates to bowling shoes withremovable slide pads, each having a plurality of sections with varyingcoefficients of friction.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Each bowler has a unique style that they use during their approach to abowling lane and during their ball release motion. Moreover, the bowlinglanes and approaches are not uniformly conditioned. Thus, bowlersrequire bowling shoes that can be adjusted to accommodate theirparticular style and the various surface conditions that can beencountered.

Experienced bowlers often desire that each of the left and right shoesexhibit different characteristics, especially with respect to slidingfriction on the smooth, wooden or synthetic floors typically present inthe approach region of a bowling lane. Moreover, even for one or theother of the left or right shoe, such bowler typically desires adifferent sliding characteristic on the forefoot portion of the shoesole verses the heel portion of that shoe sole. In yet a furthercustomization, the bowler may desire that the friction characteristicsof each forepart and heel be adjustable depending on, for example, thesurface characteristics of the bowling center in which a particularcompetition is staged, the day-to-day changes in temperature andhumidity in the bowling center, or increase in confidence as the bowlerwarms up and reaches peak performance

One of the problems associated with conventional bowling shoes havingfixed shoe soles is that a bowler must purchase many pairs of bowlingshoes to adjust to various bowling surface conditions, as well as eachbowler's style preferance. Additionally, the ball and heel portions ofthe shoe often become worn out due to increased stress exerted on theseportions, thus rendering the whole shoe unusable to the bowler.

To solve these problems, the bowling shoes are often provided withremovable pads attached to the underside of the shoe sole to allow thebowler to adjust the friction of the shoe. For example, U.S. Pat. No.7,246,453 to Kim, U.S. Pat. No. 6,598,324 to Tsuji, and U.S. Pat. No.5,542,198 to Famolare describe bowling shoes with interchangeableforeparts and interchangeable heels on the same shoe, but not on eithershoe. Other known bowling shoes include the shoes that haveinterchangeable inserts that may be attached to either a left or rightshoe outsole. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,672,077 to Coles discloses ashoe with removable cleats/inserts attached to a plurality of spacedrecesses in the shoe sole, which allows the user may to selectivelyreplace individual inserts that have different coefficients of frictionto achieve desired degrees of traction on the bowling surface. U.S. Pat.No. 6,662,476 to Lind, U.S. Pat. No. 6,651,360 to Lind, and U.S. Pat.No. 6,243,973 to Lind all relate to a pad that is interchangeable withanother pad, wherein each pad is removably attached to either the leftor the right shoe, and wherein each pad is different than the next pad.

However, the pads or inserts provided in the above-cited patents seem tobe limited to a section of the overall bottom surface of the shoe, asopposed to covering the entire bottom surface. This limited sizerelative to the overall bottom surface may be important in permittingthe pad to be attached to either the left or right shoe. Additionally,when the pads or inserts cover only a portion of the overall bottomsurface of the shoe sole, the peripheral shoe sole material makescontact with the bowling surface, which negatively affects the movementof the bowler.

Another disadvantage of the known pads or inserts described above isthat each of the pads has a single coefficient of friction over theentire bottom surface of the pad. During the bowling stride, a forepartof the shoe sole typically goes through a motion wherein different areasof the forepart make contact with the bowling lane surface at differenttimes. Thus, it is advantageous to have a slide pad attachable to theforefoot portion of the shoe sole that has areas with differentcoefficient of friction to allow the bowler to precisely control thesliding action of the shoe. Further, it is preferable to have a smoothtransition between the areas with different coefficients of friction toprovide more precise and even control over the sliding of the bowlingshoe.

A removable heel insert product, H5 Saw Tooth Heel, sold by theapplicant Dexter Shoe Company, is designed to attach to a heel portionof a bowling shoe outsole to provide varying degrees of braking. Theheel insert has three zones with varying coefficient of friction and twotransition zones. However, the H5 Saw Tooth Heel product is not capableof being attached to the forefoot part of the bowling shoe and is notdesigned to providing varying sliding characteristics. Furthermore, thetransition zones provided on the product do not extend laterallysubstantially across the entire width of the shoe sole, and thus do notprovide a uniform smooth transition between the zones with differenttraction characteristics.

Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a bowling footwear kit thathas removable foreparts and heel parts made out of various slidingmaterials to enable a bowler to improve sliding on varying bowling lanesurface conditions. It would also be desirable to provide a bowlingfootwear kit that includes improved slide pads having areas withdifferent coefficients of friction that are connected by transitionzones to provide a smooth transition from one coefficient of friction tothe other. It would further be desirable to have slide pads with theplurality of areas, wherein each area covers the entire lateral bottomsurface of a slide area of the shoe sole.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is an objective of the present invention to provide abowling footwear kit that has removable slide pads, wherein each pad hasa plurality of areas with varying coefficient of friction made connectedby smooth transition areas to enable a bowler to improve sliding onvarying bowling lane surface conditions, wherein each area extendslaterally substantially across an entire width of the slide pad.

It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a bowlingfootwear kit with improved removable slide pads that cover the entirelateral bottom surface of a slide area of the shoe sole.

It is yet a further objective of the present invention to provide abowling footwear kit having interchangeable slide pads that can beapplied to either the left or right shoe.

These and other objectives are achieved by a bowling shoe kit, includinga shoe upper, a shoe sole mounted to the shoe upper and having a slidearea extending longitudinally from a toe end of the shoe sole rearwardlytowards an arch portion thereof, and extending laterally substantiallyacross an entire width of the shoe sole, at least one slide pad having aperipheral margin substantially equal to a peripheral margin of theslide area, and a fastener removably securing the at least one slide padto the slide area, wherein the at least one slide pad substantiallycovers the slide area. The least one slide pad includes a first areaextending from a front portion of the slide area rearwardly to a rearportion of the first area and having a first coefficient of friction, asecond area extending from the rear portion of the first area rearwardlyto a rear portion of the second area and having a second coefficient offriction, and a third area extending from the rear portion of the secondarea rearwardly toward a rear portion of the slide area and having athird coefficient of friction, wherein the first coefficient of frictionis different from the third coefficient of friction, and the secondcoefficient of friction presents a transition from the first coefficientof friction to the third coefficient of friction.

In some embodiments, the fastener comprises hook and pile fastenersystem attached to the slide area of the shoe sole and the at least oneslide pad.

In certain embodiments, the at least one slide pad is secured to theslide area by the fastener along a portion of the slide area. In some ofthese embodiments, a lateral section of the at least one slide pad isnot secured to the slide area.

In some advantageous embodiments, the at least one slide pad is securedto the slide area by the fastener along the entire slide area.

In certain embodiments, the first area comprises a first material, thethird area comprises a third material, and the second area comprises asaw tooth design of the first material and the third material.

In some cases, each of the first, second and third areas extendlaterally substantially across an entire width of the slide pad.

In some embodiments, the bowling shoe kit further includes a pluralityof heel pads, each having a different coefficient of friction, and aheel fastener for removably securing a selected heel pad to a heelportion of the shoe sole, wherein the plurality of heel pads areinterchangeable to vary the coefficient of friction of the heel portionof the shoe sole. In certain of these embodiments, the heel fastenercomprises hook and pile fastener system attached to said heel portion ofsaid show sole and the selected heel pad. In certain of theseembodiments, each of the plurality of heel pads includes a first heelarea extending from a front portion of the heel area rearwardly to arear portion of the first heel area and having a first heel coefficientof friction, a second heel area extending from the rear portion of thefirst heel area rearwardly to a rear portion of the second heel area andhaving a second heel coefficient of friction, and a third heel areaextending from the rear portion of the second heel area rearwardlytoward a rear portion of the heel area and having a third coefficient offriction, wherein the first heel coefficient of friction is differentfrom the third heel coefficient of friction, and the second heelcoefficient of friction presents a transition from the first heelcoefficient of friction to the third heel coefficient of friction. Insome of these embodiments, the first heel area comprises a first heelmaterial, the third heel area comprises a third heel material, and thesecond heel area comprises a saw tooth design of the first heel materialand the third heel material.

In certain embodiments, the slide area includes an area from one half toabout three fourths of the distance between the toe end of the shoe anda heel end of the shoe. In other embodiments, the slide area includes anarea from about three eighths to about five eighths of a distancebetween the toe end of the shoe and a heel end of the shoe.

In some embodiments, the at least one slide pad further includes afourth area extending from the rear portion of the third area rearwardlytoward a rear portion of the fourth area and having a fourth coefficientof friction, and a fifth area extending from the rear portion of thefourth area toward the rear portion of the slide area and having a fifthcoefficient of friction, wherein the fifth coefficient of friction isdifferent from the third coefficient of friction, and the fourthcoefficient of friction presents a transition from the third coefficientof friction to the fifth heel coefficient of friction. In certain ofthese embodiments, the third area comprises a third material, the fiftharea comprises a fifth material, and the fourth area comprises a sawtooth design of the third material and the fifth material.

In certain embodiments, the peripheral margin of the at least one slidepad substantially matches the peripheral margin of the slide area ofboth the left shoe and the right shoe, such that the slide pad may bemounted to the left shoe and to the right shoe.

A slide pad for a bowling shoe in also provided, including a first areaextending from a front portion of the slide area rearwardly to a rearportion of the first area and having a first coefficient of friction, asecond area extending from the rear portion of the first area rearwardlyto a rear portion of the second area and having a second coefficient offriction, a third area extending from the rear portion of the secondarea rearwardly toward a rear portion of the slide area and having athird coefficient of friction, and a fastener for removable attachmentto a sole of the bowling shoe, wherein the first coefficient of frictionis different from the third coefficient of friction, and the secondcoefficient of friction presents a transition from the first coefficientof friction to the third coefficient of friction, and wherein, whenattached to the sole, the slide pad substantially covers a slide area ofthe sole extending longitudinally from a toe end of the sole rearwardlytowards an arch portion thereof, and extending laterally substantiallyacross an entire width of the sole.

In some embodiments, the fastener includes a first part if a two-partfastener for attaching to a second part of the two-part fastener whichis disposed on the slide area of the shoe.

In certain embodiments, the slide pad is secured to the slide area bythe fastener along a portion of the slide area. In some of theseembodiments, a lateral section of the slide pad is not secured to theslide area.

In some embodiments, the slide pad is secured to the slide area by thefastener along the entire slide area.

In certain advantageous embodiments, the first area comprises a firstmaterial, the third area comprises a third material, and the second areacomprises a saw tooth design of the first material and the thirdmaterial.

In some cases, when attached to the slide area of the shoe, the slidepad covers an area from one half to about three fourths of the distancebetween the toe end of the shoe and a heel end of the shoe. In otherembodiments, when attached to the slide area of the shoe, the slide padcovers an area from about three eighths to about five eighths of adistance between the toe end of the shoe and a heel end of the shoe.

In certain embodiments, each of the first, second and third areas extendlaterally substantially across an entire width of the slide pad.

In some advantageous embodiments, a peripheral margin of the slide padsubstantially matches a peripheral margin of the slide area of both aleft shoe and a right shoe, such that the slide pad may be mounted tothe left shoe and to the right shoe.

In certain advantageous embodiments, the slide pad has a proximal endand a distal end, and a peripheral margin of the proximal endsubstantially matches the peripheral margin of the distal end, such thateither the proximal end or the distal end of the slide pad is attachableto the toe end of the shoe. In some of these embodiments, one of theproximal end and the distal end of the slide pad is cut to substantiallycorrespond to a peripheral margin of the toe end of the shoe beforeattaching the slide pad to the shoe sole.

The particular details and benefits of the present invention will beapparent to those of skill in the art based on the following descriptionwith reference to the appended drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a bowling shoe and an attachable slidepad comprising a bowling footwear kit of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the slide pad of the bowling footwear kit ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the slide pad of the bowling footwear kit ofFIG. 1.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are bottom view of the slide pad of FIG. 4, showing thecut line.

FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the slide pad of the bowling footwear kit ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a bottom view of a heel pad of the bowling footwear kit ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the bowling footwear kit with theattachable heel pad of FIG. 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the figures in which identical elements are numberedidentically throughout, a description of exemplary embodiments of thepresent invention will now be provided.

An exemplary embodiment of a bowling shoe kit of the present inventionis illustrated in FIG. 1. The bowling shoe kit 10 includes a shoe upper12 and a shoe sole 14 mounted to the shoe upper. The shoe upper 12 isconventional in construction, and is preferably constructed from leathermaterials. However, it should be understood that any other suitablematerial may be used for the shoe upper in accordance with the presentinvention. The shoe sole 14 is preferably constructed from ethelynevinyl acetate (EVA), although other conventional shoe sole materials arealso suitable.

The shoe sole 14 has a traction surface 16 that typically comes intocontact with a bowling lane surface during bowling. The traction surfaceincludes a slide area 18 extending longitudinally from a toe end of theshoe sole 14 rearwardly towards an arch area portion of the sole. Theslide area 18 is designed to receive a removably attachable slide pad,which is described in more detail below. The size of the slide area 18may vary depending on a desired level of sliding. In some advantageousembodiments, the slide area 18 extends from about one half to aboutthree fourths of the distance between the front of the shoe and the backof each shoe. In other advantageous embodiments of the presentinvention, the slide area 18 extends from about three eighths to aboutfive eighths of the distance between the toe end of the shoe and theback of the shoe.

The bowling shoe kit 10 further includes a slide pad 20 removablyattachable to the slide area 18 of the shoe, as shown in FIG. 1. Theslide pad 20 has a bottom surface 22 for contacting the surface of thebowling lane and a mounting surface 24 for attachment to the shoe sole14. The slide pad 20 functions to cover a portion of the tractionsurface 16 of the shoe outsole 14 to provide a predetermined tractioncharacteristic which affects the amount of adhesive friction between theshoe sole 14 and the surface on which it is placed. A tractioncharacteristic of the slide pad 20 can be varied by changing thecoefficient of friction associated with the material used to form theslide pad. Thus, traction characteristics of the slide pad 20 may bevaried by using materials having a high coefficient of friction, such asrubber or the like, or a low coefficient of friction, such as leather orthe like. Additionally, the traction characteristics of the slide pad 20may be varied by providing a different size, shape and design of thebottom surface of the slide pad that contacts the floor surface, forexample, by varying the surface area of the slide pas that comes intocontact with the floor surface, or by adjusting the shapes of theregions of the slide pad that contact the floor surface.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of the slide pad 20 of thepresent invention. The slide pad is shaped to correspond to the shape ofthe slide area 18 of the shoe sole 14 and has a front end 23 and a rearend 25. The bottom surface 22 of the slide pad 20 includes threeseparate areas. A first area 26 of the slide pad extends from the frontend 23 of the slide pad rearwardly to a rear portion of the first area26. A second area 27 extends from the rear portion of the first area 26rearwardly to a rear portion of the second area. A third area 28 extendsfrom the rear portion of the second area 27 rearwardly toward the rearend 25 of the slide pad. In certain advantageous embodiments, each ofthe first, second and third areas extend laterally substantially acrossan entire width of the slide pad.

A coefficient of friction of the first area 26 is different from acoefficient of friction of the third area 28, and a coefficient offriction of the second area 25 presents a transition from the firstarea's coefficient of friction to the third area's coefficient offriction. In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the first andthird areas 26, 27 are each made out of a sheet of flexible materialhaving a different coefficient of friction and/or tractioncharacteristic, and the second area 27 is created by a saw tooth designof the first area's material and the second area's material. It shouldbe noted, however, that any other design may be used without departingfrom the spirit of the present invention as long as it provides a smoothtransition area between the first and third areas of the slide pad.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the bowling shoe kit 10 of the presentinvention further includes a fastener for removably securing the slidepad 20 to the slide area 18 of the shoe sole 14. Any known fastenersystem that allows for releasable attachment of a first body to a secondbody may be used in accordance with the present invention. In oneadvantageous embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the fastener is a hook and pilefastener system including a first fastener part 30 secured to themounting surface 24 of the slide pad 20 and a second fastener part 32secured to the slide area 18 of the shoe sole 14. The first fastenerpart 30 is a hook portion of the fastener system and the second fastenerpart 32 is a pile part of the fastener system, although the oppositeconfiguration would be equally effective. The hook portion and the pileportion may be attached to the mating faces by any suitable customarymeans, such as by adhesive or bonding.

When attached to the slide area 18 of the shoe sole 14, the slide pad 20extends laterally substantially across the entire width of the shoe solesuch that the slide pad substantially covers the entire toe area of theshoe. Such design is advantageous is that it prevents the peripheralshoe sole material from making contact with the bowling surface, whichaffects the sliding/traction characteristics of the bowling shoe. Thisshoe construction provides a consistent “feel” and amount of traction tothe wearer, and allows the shoe to function as though the entire shoesole was constructed from the materials that comprise the slide pad.

In the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1, the slide pad 20 issecured to the slide area 18 by the fastener 30, 32 along the entireslide area. It is understood, however, that the slide pad 20 may beattached to the slide area 18 of the shoe sole 14 along a portion of theslide area. For example, the slide pad 20 may not be secured to theslide area 18 along a lateral section of the slide pad 20.

In another advantageous embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, the slide pad34 has a first end 33 and a second end 35, the first end 33 having aperipheral margin that substantially matches a peripheral margin of thesecond end 35. Such design allows for either the first end 33 or thesecond end 35 of the slide pad 34 to be attached to the toe end of theshoe. In particular, as shown in FIG. 4A, before the slide pad 34 isattached to the bowling shoe, the pad 34 may be trimmed/cut along theline 36, which corresponds to the peripheral margin of the toe end ofthe shoe sole such. After the slide is trimmed, the slide pad 34 isattached to the shoe sole with the first end 33 being positioned overthe toe end of the shoe. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 4B, the slidepad 34 may be cut along the line 37, such that the second end 35 of theslide pad is attached to the toe end of the shoe. The design of theslide pad illustrated in FIG. 3 is advantageous in that it maximizes theoptions available to the bowler to adjust the bowling shoe's slidingcharacteristics to suit the bowler's individual needs.

FIG. 5 illustrates yet another advantageous embodiment of the slide padof the present invention. In this embodiment, the slide pad 40 includesa first area 42, a second area 44, a third area 46, a fourth area 48 anda fifth area 50. The fourth area 48 extends from a rear portion of thethird area 46 rearwardly toward a rear portion of the fourth area, andthe fifth area 50 extends from the rear portion of the fourth area 48toward the rear portion of the slide area 18. The fifth area 50 has acoefficient of friction different from the coefficient of friction ofthe third area 46, and the fourth area 48 has a coefficient of frictionthat presents a transition between the coefficients of friction of thethird and fifth areas. In some embodiments, the third, fourth, and fifthcoefficients of friction are different from the first and secondcoefficients of friction. In other embodiments, at least two of the fiveareas of the slide pad 20 may have same coefficients of friction,depending on the desired sliding characteristics of the pad. In theexemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the fourth area 48 is formed by asaw tooth design of a material of the third area 46 and a material ofthe fifth area 50.

The bowling shoe kit 10 of the present invention may further include aheel pad 60 removably securable to the shoe sole 14, as shown in FIG. 6.The traction surface 16 of the shoe sole 14 includes a heel portion 62.The heel pad has a bottom surface 66 that makes contact with the bowlinglane surface during bowling, and a mounting surface 64 for attachment tothe heel portion 62 of the shoe sole 14 via a heel fastener. Anysuitable fastener type may be used in accordance with the presentinvention. In one advantageous embodiment, the fastener is a hook andpile fastener system, wherein a pile portion of the system is attachedto the heel area 62 of the sole 14 and a hook portion of the fastenersystem is attached to the mounting surface of the heel pad 60, althoughan opposite configuration may be used as well. The hook portion and theloop portion may be attached to the mating faces by any suitable knownmeans, such as by adhesive or bonding.

The bottom view of an exemplary embodiment of the heel pad 60 isillustrated in FIG. 7. The heel pad 60 includes a first heel area 72extending from a front portion of the heel pad closest to the archportion of the shoe sole 14 rearwardly to a rear portion of the firstheel area 72 and having a first heel coefficient of friction. The heelpad 60 further includes a second heel area 70 extending from the rearportion of the first heel area 72 rearwardly to a rear portion of thesecond heel area 70 and having a second heel coefficient of friction.The heel pad also includes a third heel area 68 extending from the rearportion of the second heel area 70 rearwardly toward a rear portion ofthe heel pad 60 adjacent the heel end of the shoe sole 14 and having athird coefficient of friction.

The first heel coefficient of friction is preferably different from thethird heel coefficient of friction, and the second heel coefficient offriction preferably presents a transition from the first heelcoefficient of friction to the third heel coefficient of friction. Thisis achieved by using materials with different coefficients of frictionfor each of the heel pad areas. In one advantageous embodiment shown inFIG. 6, the second heel area 70 comprises a saw tooth design of thefirst heel material and the third heel material having differentcoefficients of friction. It is understood, however, that any otherdesign may be used in accordance with the present invention to achieve asmooth transition zone between the first and third heel coefficients offriction.

It is understood that the bowling shoe kit of the present invention mayinclude a plurality of slide pads removably attachable to a sole of abowling shoe. Each of the plurality of slide pads preferably has areasmade with materials having varying coefficients of friction such thatthe traction characteristic of each slide pad is different from anotherslide pad in the kit. This allows a bowler to easily change theslide/traction of the bowling shoe to adjust to particular bowling laneconditions. In additional advantageous embodiments, the bowling kitincludes a plurality of interchangeable heel pads, each having adifferent traction characteristic/coefficient of friction for providingvarying degrees of braking.

When in use, the slide pad 20 and the heel pad 60 are aligned over theslide area 18 and the heel area 62 respectively and the hook material 30of the slide pad 20 and the heel pad 60 is firmly pressed against theloop material 32 of the slide area and the heel area to secure the slidepad and heel pad in position. When a shoe with a different tractioncharacteristic is needed, the user simply removes one slide pad or oneheel pad, or both and replaces it with another slide pad or heel padmade with different slide material, thus giving the shoe a differenttraction characteristic.

In some advantageous embodiments, the slide pad 20 and/or the heel pad60 may be used on either a right shoe or a left shoe to accommodate bothright-handed and left-handed bowlers. In these embodiments, theperipheral margins of the slide pad 20 and the heel pad 60 substantiallycorrespond to the peripheral margin of the slide areas and the heelareas of both the right shoe and the left shoe. This allows for theslide pad 20 to be removably attached to the slide area on the left shoeand on the right shoe. Similarly, the heel pad 60 also may be removablyattached to the heel area on the left shoe and the right shoe.

The bowling footwear kit may further include a scale that ratesdifferent coefficients of friction of the slide pad areas and heel padareas in the kit. For example, the kit may include a one to ten scalethat rates the coefficients of friction from one having the highestcoefficient of friction and therefore providing the least sliding actionto ten having the lowest coefficient of friction and this providing themost sliding action.

Although the invention has been described with reference to severalembodiments with certain constructions, structures, ingredients andformulations and the like, these are not intended to exhaust allpossible arrangements or features, and indeed many other modificationsand variations will be ascertainable to those of skill in the art.

What is claimed is:
 1. A bowling shoe kit, comprising: a shoe upper; ashoe sole mounted to the shoe upper, said shoe sole having a slide areaextending longitudinally from a toe end of said shoe sole rearwardlytowards an arch portion thereof, and extending laterally substantiallyacross an entire width of said shoe sole; at least one slide pad havinga peripheral margin substantially equal to a peripheral margin of saidslide area, said at least one slide pad comprising: a first areaextending from a front portion of the slide area rearwardly to a rearportion of the first area and having a first coefficient of friction, asecond area extending from the rear portion of the first area rearwardlyto a rear portion of the second area and having a second coefficient offriction, and a third area extending from the rear portion of the secondarea rearwardly toward a rear portion of the slide area and having athird coefficient of friction, wherein the first coefficient of frictionis different from the third coefficient of friction, and the secondcoefficient of friction presents a transition from the first coefficientof friction to the third coefficient of friction; and a fastenerremovably securing said at least one slide pad to said slide area;wherein said at least one slide pad substantially covers said slidearea.
 2. The bowling shoe kit according to claim 1, wherein saidfastener comprises hook and pile fastener system attached to said slidearea of said shoe sole and said at least one slide pad.
 3. The bowlingshoe kit according to claim 1, wherein said at least one slide pad issecured to said slide area by said fastener along a portion of the slidearea.
 4. The bowling shoe kit according to claim 3, wherein a lateralsection of said at least one slide pad is not secured to the slide area.5. The bowling shoe kit according to claim 1, wherein said at least oneslide pad is secured to said slide area by said fastener along theentire slide area.
 6. The bowling shoe kit according to claim 1, whereinsaid first area comprises a first material, said third area comprises athird material, and said second area comprises a saw tooth design ofsaid first material and said third material.
 7. The bowling shoe kitaccording to claim 1, wherein each of said first, second and third areasextend laterally substantially across an entire width of said slide pad.8. The bowling shoe kit according to claim 1, further comprising: aplurality of heel pads, each having a different coefficient of friction;and a heel fastener for removably securing a selected heel pad to a heelportion of said shoe sole; wherein said plurality of heel pads areinterchangeable to vary the coefficient of friction of the heel portionof the shoe sole.
 9. The bowling shoe kit according to claim 8, whereinsaid heel fastener comprises hook and pile fastener system attached tosaid heel portion of said show sole and the selected heel pad.
 10. Thebowling shoe kit according to claim 8, wherein each of said plurality ofheel pads comprises: a first heel area extending from a front portion ofthe heel pad rearwardly to a rear portion of the first heel area andhaving a first heel coefficient of friction, a second heel areaextending from the rear portion of the first heel area rearwardly to arear portion of the second heel area and having a second heelcoefficient of friction, and a third heel area extending from the rearportion of the second heel area rearwardly toward a rear portion of theheel pad and having a third coefficient of friction, wherein the firstheel coefficient of friction is different from the third heelcoefficient of friction, and the second heel coefficient of frictionpresents a transition from the first heel coefficient of friction to thethird heel coefficient of friction.
 11. The bowling shoe kit accordingto claim 10, wherein said first heel area comprises a first heelmaterial, said third heel area comprises a third heel material, and saidsecond heel area comprises a saw tooth design of said first heelmaterial and said third heel material.
 12. The bowling shoe kitaccording to claim 1, wherein said slide area comprises an area fromabout one half to about three fourths of the distance between the toeend of the shoe and a heel end of the shoe.
 13. The bowling shoe kitaccording to claim 1, wherein said slide area comprises an area fromabout three eighths to about five eighths of a distance between the toeend of the shoe and a heel end of the shoe.
 14. The bowling shoe kitaccording to claim 1, wherein said at least one slide pad furthercomprises: a fourth area extending from the rear portion of the thirdarea rearwardly toward a rear portion of the fourth area and having afourth coefficient of friction; and a fifth area extending from the rearportion of the fourth area toward the rear portion of the slide area andhaving a fifth coefficient of friction; wherein the fifth coefficient offriction is different from the third coefficient of friction, and thefourth coefficient of friction presents a transition from the thirdcoefficient of friction to the fifth heel coefficient of friction 15.The bowling shoe kit according to claim 14, wherein said third areacomprises a third material, said fifth area comprises a fifth material,and said fourth area comprises a saw tooth design of said third materialand said fifth material.
 16. The bowling shoe kit according to claim 1,wherein the peripheral margin of said at least one slide padsubstantially matches the peripheral margin of the slide area of boththe left shoe and the right shoe, such that said at least one slide padmay be mounted to the left shoe and to the right shoe.
 17. A slide padfor a bowling shoe, said slide pad comprising: a first area extendingfrom a front portion of the slide area rearwardly to a rear portion ofthe first area and having a first coefficient of friction; a second areaextending from the rear portion of the first area rearwardly to a rearportion of the second area and having a second coefficient of friction;a third area extending from the rear portion of the second arearearwardly toward a rear portion of the slide area and having a thirdcoefficient of friction; a fastener for removable attachment to a soleof the bowling shoe; and wherein the first coefficient of friction isdifferent from the third coefficient of friction, and the secondcoefficient of friction presents a transition from the first coefficientof friction to the third coefficient of friction; and wherein, whenattached to the sole, said slide pad substantially covers a slide areaof the sole extending longitudinally from a toe end of the solerearwardly towards an arch portion thereof, and extending laterallysubstantially across an entire width of the sole.
 18. The slide padaccording to claim 17, wherein said fastener comprises a first part if atwo-part fastener for attaching to a second part of the two-partfastener which is disposed on the slide area of the shoe.
 19. The slidepad according to claim 17, wherein said slide pad is secured to theslide area by said fastener along a portion of the slide area.
 20. Theslide pad according to claim 19, wherein a lateral section of said slidepad is not secured to the slide area.
 21. The slide pad according toclaim 17, wherein said slide pad is secured to said slide area by saidfastener along the entire slide area.
 22. The slide pad according toclaim 17, wherein said first area comprises a first material, said thirdarea comprises a third material, and said second area comprises a sawtooth design of said first material and said third material.
 23. Theslide pad according to claim 17, wherein, when attached to the slidearea of the shoe, said slide pad covers an area from one half to aboutthree fourths of the distance between the toe end of the shoe and a heelend of the shoe.
 24. The slide pad according to claim 17, wherein, whenattached to the slide area of the shoe, said slide pad covers an areafrom about three eighths to about five eighths of a distance between thetoe end of the shoe and a heel end of the shoe.
 25. The slide padaccording to claim 17, wherein each of said first, second and thirdareas extend laterally substantially across an entire width of saidslide pad.
 26. The slide pad according to claim 17, wherein a peripheralmargin of said slide pad substantially matches a peripheral margin ofthe slide area of both a left shoe and a right shoe, such that saidslide pad may be mounted to the left shoe and to the right shoe.
 27. Theslide pad according to claim 17, wherein said slide pad has a first endand a second end, and wherein a peripheral margin of the first endsubstantially matches a peripheral margin of the second end, such thateither the first end or the second end of said slide pad is attachableto the toe end of the shoe.
 28. The slide pad according to claim 27,wherein one of the first end and the second end of said slide pad is cutto substantially correspond to a peripheral margin of the toe end of theshoe before attaching said slide pad to the shoe sole.